Kansas

The best songs Kansas did, plus a few extra cuts. What more could you ask?

KANSAS - The Best of Kansas (1999) (**** ) 12 tracks (65:31)

This is the expanded version of The Best of Kansas that came out in 1984 on vinyl. The earlier version had only 9 songs on it. This 1999 update includes The Pinnacle, The Devil Game, and the "Live" version of Closet Chronicles, previously on the 2 record set, Two For The Show.

For a single disc "Best of", it's not bad. KANSAS has so many great tracks from a dozen albums it's hard to decide exactly what to include. The easy ones are the definitive hits, such as Dust In the Wind, Carry On Wayward Son, Song for America, and Hold On.

For the Fans who want everything that KANSAS has to offer, it's an easy choice, since this CD is the only place to obtain the Live version of Closet Chronicles that was omitted from the Compact disc version of Two for the Show, so it could a single disc also. Otherwise, this is just a place for the casual fan to get some basic KANSAS music. A good place for someone to get acquainted with the bands most popular songs. Isn't that what "Best of's" are for?

True fans will already have all the bands individual CD's.

The Best of Kansas offers most of their best songs, but you know, there's NEVER been a case where I was completely satisfied with a compilation disc. It's because once you explore an artist more, you realize their Best of or Greatest Hit collection can't possibly capture their best moments. And since "the best songs" and "their biggest hits" are two separate things, this CAN'T be the Best of Kansas. It's missing a few highly memorable progressive rock tunes, especially some of their songs from the first two albums. As someone who's a fan, I don't like that very much. But then again, as a fan, I don't need this album. I recommend you pick up the first two albums to hear what Kansas was like in the early days and then pick up one of their later albums to see where they ended up.

I first bought this album back when It was first released. Excellent complilation. I loved every song on here and eventually since then I went out and bought every CD. I even liked " Perfect Lover" and was disappointed that it was not included in the remaster. They could have included it and still included the three extra tracks. "Closet Chronicles" was an excellent choice to include as an extra track.

I can't claim to be a long-time highly knowledgeable Kansas fan, but I found nary a weak track here.

Leftoverture starts off with a pure classic but then seems somewhat lacking for the next few tracks only picking up toward the end with the promise of things yet to come. Not as consistent as the real breakthrough down here in Oz - Point of Know Return - but still a must for any Kansas fan's library. Anyway by today's standards it's a breath of much needed fresh air for us old 70s rockers decaying away in middle age. And yes the remastering is very good!!!

Maybe the most influential Kansas album ever, Leftoveture, was recommended by my friend. Usually I don't like so much about progressive rock but this album is very good! Although some of the songs are quite long and there is many solos, it isn't boring at all. The songs like "Carry on Wayward Son", "The Wall", and "Cheyenne Anthem" are progressive rock as it best. I even like the vocalist's voice. My friend said that this reminds him of old Genesis, and I cannot argue with that - I have to agree! The keyboard solos are amazing - if you don't believe me - maybe you should hear the song "Magnum Opus" which is almost instrumental.
Stars: Carry on Warward Son, Cheyenne Anthem, What's on My Mind

Kansas bred progressive rockers simply called Kansas' fourth album Leftoverture was released in October of 1976.
By 1976, Kansas had three albums under their belt. Their 1974 debut which went nowhere (but had memorable songs like Can I Tell You and Lonely Wind), their early 1975 effort Song For America (with the title cut and Down the Road) showed promise and growth but their third album released later in 1975 Masque (with Icarus and The Pinnacle) sold less and Kansas were faced with being dropped from Kirshner Records (a label distributed by CBS Records (now Sony BMG) which was owned by rock impressario Don Kirshner who helped shape the career of The Monkees and launched the TV series Don Kirshner's Rock Concert).
As a result, singer/keyboard player Steve Walsh, guitarist/keyboard player Kerry Livgren, guitarist Rich Williams, bass player Dave Hope, violinist/vocalist Robbie Steinhardt and drummer Phil Ehart went to Studio in the Country in Louisiana (the studio was so named as it was in the middle of a swamp) to record their fourth album with producer Jeff Glixman. At the time, Walsh suffered writers block so it was up to Livgren to write the material and boy did he deliver.
We open the album with Kansas' first US Top 20 hit, the rocker "Carry On Wayward Son". The song was composed at the last minute after the rest of the album was written. This was the song that put Kansas on the map and I can see why as it is a guitar and keyboard driven rocker. This song is being played right now on some radio station (in its 1984 remix form but this is the original mix on Leftoverture). Next is the philosophical piece and a great song called "The Wall" which was Livgren's piece about man's place on Earth and where does God play a role. Ironically, Livgren plus Hope would become Born-Again Christians in 1979. Next is another great rocker called "What's On My Mind" which is just an awesome song and why Livgren was not ever picked to be one of rock's greatest axe slingers aside WIlliams remains a mystery. The album's first side ended with the epic "Miracles Out Of Nowhere". This epic has Walsh and Steinhardt on lead vocals and reminds me of Yes, ELP, Genesis and Pink Floyd musically with its changes in dynamics, tempo changes and so forth, especially the end where it goes fast then ends with violin, organ, tympani and the inevitable gong.
The album's second half starts with "Opus Insert" which is another great piece. It goes from fast to slow then to a carousel organ-type middle section with synthesizers before going back to the music for verse and chorus then has a reprise of the intro and the bridge to end this song. Next is another great piece called "Questions Of My Childhood" which is driven by synthesizers and acoustic guitars and is a great song. Next is my second favorite on the album called "Cheyenne Anthem" which speaks about the fall of the American Indian tribes and the struggles to adapt to change. The music is amazing, acoustic and slow for the verses then goes to a fast middle section with synthesizers, organs, drums and violins. Then back to acoustic intro before ending with full band. Awesome song! We close the album with the fittingly titled "Magnum Opus" which is an eight and a half minute epic. The first 2:30 is nice and relaxing, especially the Howling at the Moon part but then we go all throttle fast for a few minutes before slowing down then speed up again before ending in a majestic way. Shame musicians can't play like this anymore.
Leftoverture was the album that made Kansas a household name and reached #5 on the Billboard album chart and sold four million copies in the US alone and made them the top American progressive rock band out there.
The album was re-released as a remastered CD for its 25th Anniversary in May of 2001 and sounds amazing. Also, it has extra songs which were a spirited live version of Carry On Wayward Son which buries the Two For The Show version by a longshot. Next is an awesome version of the epic Cheyenne Anthem from December, 1977 and rivals its studio counterpart.
Leftoverture still sounds competent and fresh today and has aged better than any disco trash record.
RECOMMENDED!

KANSAS - Leftoverture (1976) (*****) 10 tracks - (55:23)

Leftoverture, KANSAS's fourth album, released in 1976, is almost universally accepted as a Classic Rock Masterpiece, just as it's full 5-star rating shows! It is also considered the band's top progressive album, just above Song For America. Although there are not as many epic-length songs, the ones presented are highly arranged and orchestrated. Kerry Livgren (guitar/keyboards) wrote many of the songs on his own, a few more with Steve Walsh (vocals/ keyboards), and collaborated with the whole band on Magnum Opus. In fact Livgren was on quite a roll during the recording sessions for Leftoverture.

The album was the band's most successful effort up to that point, and kind of took them by surprise when it moved into the top five on the album charts. The band soon went from an "opening act" to their first headlining tour. Much of the bands success came on the heels of Carry On Wayward Son, which peaked at #11 and eventually became an FM Rock radio staple. It is easily one of my personal favorite songs of all time. Whenever someone tries to pick my brain on music trivia and eventually asks me what I think is the greatest rock song of all time; I'm quick to say, "Kansas - Carry On Wayward Son". It's got everything a good rock song needs: Great vocals, a punchy drum beat, good keyboards, and searing guitars all wrapped into one.

There is simply not a weak song on the whole album. Start to finish, it just keeps on delivering. From great Rock, to progressive masterpieces like Miracles Out of Nowhere, Cheyenne Anthem, and the epic-length Magnum Opus. If you don't own any KANSAS albums, this is definitely a good place to start.

***** Highly Recommended *****

This 2001 EPIC/Legacy remaster has two added bonus tracks. Carry On Wayward Son and Cheyenne Anthem "Live", both previously unreleased. These are nice additions to the original album that can one day be merged into a complete 2-disc set of Live Kansas when Two For The Show is eventually remastered.

Best Tracks: They're All Good!

Along with Masque, I believe Leftoverture to be Kansas' finest work. This compilation offers a wide variety of soundscapes and textures. If you like lush keyboards, wonderful vocal harmonies, busy-yet-tight bass lines, drumming that is technical, yet not-overdone, finely-played violin, and the vocal talents of not one but three, you cannot go wrong by purchasing Leftoverture. Those of you in your forties and fifties probably already know this. Those of you who are quite a bit younger, trust me, please.

For me, this is one of Kansas's best albums-period! While their later albums sonically would prove to be more sophisticated, none of their later efforts would match the pure, raw energy of their debut. This is not to say that the band's later work was not superb. But to my ears, Kansas was never as magnificent as on their first album. Here it really sounds like the band is out to grab the listener by the throat with the sheer ferocity of their playing. They do, and they never let go, from first note to last. Surely, this is one of the greatest debut albums ever! There is also an ecstatic joy that is quite palpable in the band's playing and for me Robby Steinhardt's violin NEVER sounded so inspired or intricate. I had the original cd issue of this and the new remastered edition is a big jump in sound quality. The music is quite detailed with a great bass tone and bottom end. I really can't say enough about this album. I never grow tired of it and I always play it when I need some inspiration-great album to work out to! I feel so fortunate to have found Kansas. Their songs are so inspiring, heroic even, and unique-noboby sounds like them and on this first album they proved that they were a force to be reckoned with and that they would take no prisoners! Go out and pick up a copy and you'll see what I mean!

Although this first release of Kansas was strong, fresh and unique it actually paled in comparision to how they sounded live at that time. I had the pleasure to see them in concert when this LP was first released back in like 1974, and all I can say is the concert was an order of magnitude better than this LP. Not to take anything away from this LP, which is in my opinion the best showing of any Kansas LP, it being more real, & straight forward with no radio fluff that the later hit generating releases would be chock full of. Check it out, you will be surprised to find another side of Kansas.

Kansas' self-titled debut, released in 1974, has some great songs. It is a bit inconsistant, but a handful of tracks make the album very worth the cost to own.
Kansas had been signed to Don Kirshner's record label prior to the arrival of Kerry Livgren (keyboard/guitar), who wrote epic prog rock songs--much different than the straight-forward southern rock the band had been playing. So on this record (and the two that followed), the band was trying to find their sound.
The first track is Can I Tell You. It's lyrics are very simple and it's violin heavy, but an alright song nonetheless and it has that "Kansas" sound. It's good to listen to once through, but you won't put it on repeat.
Bringing it Back, written by J.J. Cale, is the next track. While Cale wrote many famous songs, this one doesn't fit Kansas at all. It may be that they played it at bars to keep the drunks happy, I don't know, but they shouldn't have recorded it. It's best to skip this song.
The next song, written by Steve Walsh (vocals/keyboards), is Lonely Wind. It's a ballad that's easy to listen to, but there's nothing special about it. The lyrics are a bit odd, but not tough to understand. The track is tolerable at best.
Belexes, written by Livgren, is the next track and the first gem. It's harder edge, the great organ work by Walsh and deeper lyrics make this a Kansas classic. Not as "prog" as some other Livgren songs, but great nonethelesss.
Next is Journey from Mariabronn, written by Livgren and Walsh, which is one of my favorite Kansas songs of all time and the pinnacle of this album. It is breathtaking!
The Pilgrimage, also written by Livgren and Walsh, is not so good and does not follow the previous song well at all. It's very forgetable and best to skip.
Next is Aperçu, another Livgren/Walsh penned song, which, oddly, sounds a bit new-wave at times, but is overall one of the stronger songs on the album. The deeper you get into this track, the better it becomes.
Aperçu fades into the next song, Death of Mother Nature Suite, which was written by Livgren. This track is great and is one of my favorites, but a bit different sounding than most of their other music. It somewhat reminds me of Jimi Hendrix or Glass Harp or something like that. Death of Mother Nature Suite really cooks and should be a rock classic, except nobody knows about it outside of Kansas circles. Which is too bad.
Overall, Kansas' first effort was good, with some great and some not so great tracks. But the great songs are so good that they overshadow those lesser songs so much that you forget they are even there.

KANSAS - Kansas (1974) (**** ) 9 tracks - (54:48)

This is KANSAS's debut album. Now, I have to admit, I did not grow up listening to this album. My interest in KANSAS's music came a little later, after hearing such classics as Carry On Wayward Son and Dust in the Wind on the radio as a youth. Even though I owned Leftoverture (1976) and liked it very much, I never had the interest to go back and explore the band's back-catalog. Now, fast-forward 25 years. As a middle-aged adult who still has a big interest in music, I begin to replace many of my old first issue CD's purchased in the 80's with newly "remastered" versions.

After purchasing Leftoverture and Point of Know Return and being amazed at the new sound quality (plus bonus Live tracks!) It began a renewed interest in the music of KANSAS. Also, I had slowly generated much more of an interest in Progressive Rock, which I now understand KANSAS to be a participant in. Eventually I purchased their debut, and boy, was I surprised by the great songs that I had never heard before. Songs played with the energy of a young band hungry for success.

The album starts off with the actual song that got Kansas their first record deal, Can I Tell You. This early track, written by two-thirds of the band, is the song that Don Kirshner was so impressed with, he dispatched his VP to get a first-hand look at the band out in the Midwestern plains of Kansas. Once Wally Gold came back to New York, he recommended Kirshner sign the band, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The outstanding Prog related tracks begin about halfway thru with Belexes. Then comes a Journey From Mariabronn, a definitely Prog-length epic, clocking in at almost 8 minutes. These more complex and intricate songs keep coming with The Pilgrimage and the dual song, one-two punch of Apercu and Death Of Mother Nature Suite, which were usually played back to back Live just as they are presented on the album, flowing into one another almost as if they were simply two parts of one song (for a combination of 17 ½ minutes of brilliant songwriting). And let's not forget the great musicianship of the players. The members of Kansas were all veterans of former bands, and had a lot of experience playing before coming together as the band Kansas. That combined with the fantastic vocals of lead singer Steve Walsh, good harmonizing between Walsh, Dave Hope (bass) and Robby Steinhardt (violin), great keyboard playing between Walsh and the multi-talented Kerry Livgren (organ, piano, Moog synthesizer, lead guitar, and vocals), you have a very unique and talented outfit.

This 2004 EPIC/Legacy release has an additional bonus track consisting of a "Live" version of Bringing It Back, recorded at the Agora Ballroom, Cleveland, Ohio in 1975 (previously unreleased). Like many live tracks, it stretches the once 3 ½ minute song out to over 9 minutes of musical pleasure.


Best Tracks: Journey From Mariabronn and Apercu/Death of Mother Nature Suite

This one is absolutely remarkable. In this first record, Kansas left their unique signature, a balanced mix of 70's hard rock and progressive approach. Lonely Wind is one of Kansas best songs, as Journey From Mariabronn and Belexes.

This is one of several great works by a very unique band from the great central plains, the heart of America.

It doesn't get much better than this!!! Consistency, great musicianship, good pop sensibilities - mixed just right!!! As a drummer in a school band at the time this was originally released, the drumwork blew me away along with the big organ,the fragile violins and the rest of the LP (the big vinyl round things before CDs). And the record had the album design printed onto it - a treasure long since lost. Alas the genius was never recaptured - like many good bands, too many great musicians in one outfit lead to inevitable tensions. Do yourself a huge favour and buy this one NEW.

Kansas is great progressive rock. I think this is their greatest album. After "Leftoverture" they really made their way through. "Point of Know Return" is one of my favorite songs ever. "Paradox" is a great song and should have been in a collection. Also the instrumental "The Spider" is excellent. "Portrait (He Knew)" has exciting sounds. "Dust in the Wind" is the song which is probably the most played radio song even made by Kansas. I might be wrong but I think I've heard this peaceful song many times before. "Sparks of the Tempest"? A great song for live gigs! Old Kansas is even better than old Genesis. The keyboard solos rule!
Stars: Point of Know Return, Dust in the Wind, Paradox

Brilliant songwriting, masterful vocals, and stirring instrumentals - what more could one want out of one album? This type of rock 'n' roll merits the designation "art". Kansas delivers it all and keeps the listener coming back for more.

Kansas bred progressive rockers Kansas' fifth album entitled Point of Know Return was released in September of 1977.
The album was the follow-up to their Top 5 Quadruple Platinum selling masterpiece Leftoverture. The pressure was now on for singer/keyboard player Steve Walsh (who had writer's block on Leftoverture but co-wrote six songs on PoKR (including the title cut with drummer Phil Ehart and violinist Robbie Steinhardt whilst the rest were co-written with Kerry Livgren) and wrote the instrumental The Spider himself), guitarist/keyboard player Kerry Livgren (who wrote or co-wrote eight of the PoKR album's ten songs), guitarist Rich Williams, drummer Phil Ehart, bass player Dave Hope and violinist/vocalist Robbie Steinhardt to create an album that would either be as good as or better than its predecessor. They went back to the same studio as their two previous albums but didn't get much done so they went to Nashville to finish the record and mix in Los Angeles and the results were amazing (as I found out in 1996 when I first heard the entire album as a friend owned this CD).
We open with the album's classic title track which is a classic rock radio standard that peaked at #28 on the US singles charts in 1977. It's a nice and classic footstomping song. Next is the excellent rocker "Paradox" which sees the band playing like their lives depended on it. The instrumental "The Spider" is next and is a great piece that jumbles around place to place in its 2 minute running time. We then segue into the rocker "Portrait (He Knew)" which is one of the best rockers Kansas ever wrote. The first half closes with the epic "Closet Chronicles" which is a song that is beautiful, majestic and rocking. Great piece.
The album's second half kicks off with "Lightning's Hand" which is a great rocker with some fine guitar work by Livgren and Williams and Robbie Steinhardt singing lead vocal here. Next is the band's biggest hit and another last minute song by Livgren which was the acoustic mega-hit "Dust in the Wind". This song needs no explanation to why it is a catchy number. Next is another rocker "Sparks of the Tempest" which has some funky sections and riffing. Steinhardt does the lead vocals here whilst Wlash only sings the chorus. The next track "Nobody's Home" is another classic Kansas number which is majestic with some fine musicianship. The closing epic "Hopelessly Human" with lead vocals by Steinhardt on verses and Walsh on choruses and is a superb finale to another classic album by America's top progressive rock band.
Point of Know Return would become Kansas' highest charting album in the US reaching #4 on the Billboard album chart and tied its predecessor's sales tally with 4 million in US sales.
In 2002 for its 25th anniversary, the album was re-released in a remastered version featuring two bonus tracks. One was a killer live version of Sparks of the Tempest from 1978 and the other was a new mix of Portrait (He Knew). The sound on this remaster is fantastic and also the album's artwork is nicely re-created.
RECOMMENDED!

Truly nuts.. Using her five octave range not singing but making music with her voice... Its like some really crazy vocals backed by a band that sounds much like deep purple (highway starish)... Obviously noted exotica maestro Les Baxter wrote most of the songs except for the wacked out cover of Simon and garfunkels el condor pasa (you know the one that goes "if i could i surely would..")..whats really cool about this cover of course is that yma sumac, who is still alive and living in Los Angeles at the younge age of like 84 or 85, is from peru so her covering this song is really like reclaiming a song that paul simon really took, i'm sure no harm meant, from the native american indians of south america...

It's a good package, but I'm wondering why they didn't remix the first disc. Disc one is essentially identical to the single-CD release of this album from years ago ( including the omission of Closet Chronicles ). The mix sounds a bit flat, and pretty much monaural...again, no different from the initial CD release. Then you get to side two of mostly unreleased tracks, and the stereo is wonderful! Kerry and Rich's guitars are panned left and right, which makes for a BIG difference in imaging. They had to go back to the original multi-track tapes to cull out the gems for disc two...I'm just baffled as to why they didn't remix the disc one nuggets at the same time. Under headphones the difference is really striking on disc two, as it contains Closet Chronicles ( part of the original 1978 vinyl release, albeit omitted from the single-CD issue ), which was never remixed. Also, as someone else pointed out, The Spider instrumental, missing from the original album all these years, is on disc two, but fades as it segues into Portrait ( which is still part of disc one! ). This could have been handled a lot better through a bit of re-sequencing tracks, but apparently they didn't want to bother with remixing the original tracks.
One more significant note: During Kansas' tour of 1978, the boys in the band pulled a slick little trick during one of their numbers ( and I'd forgotten over the past thirty years just which number it was )...one by one, each band member quit playing his instrument, yet you continued to hear the instrument! They had a multi-track tape machine back at the sound board, and had it synched up with the song ( Sparks of the Tempest, I believe )...and as each guy quit playing on stage, the engineer would punch on the track featuring his instrument from the two-inch multi-track tape. You can hear this transition during the song on disc two: toward the end of the track, especially when Phil drops out on the drums, the remainder of the song is the ambient mikes picking up the multi-track recording of the number playing through the PA system! Only a band of Kansas' caliber would have the chutzpah? gonads? to pull off a stunt like this. As a musician myself, I shudder over how badly this could have ended up ( had the tape machine not been cued up properly, or the wrong multi-track tape loaded ). But then, once again, we're talking about Kansas. And bravo, guys, for being brave enough to not do any overdubs to "fix" mistakes.

This is a review for the remastered and expanded edition of Two for the Show, released in July 2008. Note that all the reviews rating this album as a 1-, 2- or 3-star record were written long before this remastered version was released. In all cases the reviewers appear to be rating the original version of the album.

The remastered version's sonic qualities far exceed that of the original vinyl, which I owned as a teenager back in the seventies. That said, the original was still one of the finest live albums of its day: great sound quality, realistic example of what the band sounded like live (I've seen them five times), and featuring an excellent selection of their best songs at the time.

But this reissue takes all that one step further by including a second disk of songs any Kansas fan will remember and cherish. There's a reason this band that hasn't released anything new in nearly a decade continues to tour nearly non-stop (albeit in smaller venues than where these songs were recorded), and continues to enjoy a sizable and rabidly loyal following. Steve Walsh's voice isn't nearly what it once was, but on this record you can hear him at the pinnacle of a career that defied odds in so many ways I can't describe them fully here.

Serious Kansas fans have already picked this treasure up; for the rest of you, do yourselves a favor and experience a band that defines the live concert experience like few others have managed to do. Buy this CD and plan on a long, fast drive along a lengthy stretch of highway while it takes you back to an age when a group of kids from middle America spent a couple of years rocking the world. Enjoy!

peace

I remember beating this record to death when I was a kid. I also remember cursing the music gods when this came out on CD and was trimmed to fit on 1 disc!

NOW....it's all here and then some! "Closet Chronicles" is back with 10 other tracks recorded during the same shows but until now were unreleased. The tracks include a killer drum solo from Ehart, which is one of the most underrated drummers ever, and a great version of my all time favorite, "Miracles Out of Nowhere".

This has got to be the BEST sounding live rock album of all time. The band is tight in the groove and yet the songs just flow out. The sound quality is fantastic, esp. when you take into consideration it was recorded in 1977-78!

This is an absolute must for any Kansas fan and I think a great starting point for anyone wanting to discover Kansas for the first time.

This album (album, does that date me?) does not disappoint. The expanded material is long overdue, and very much welcome. It's a great insight into the unique entity that is Kansas. You don't have to be a Kansas die-hard to enjoy it, just be open to rock music that is a little more intelligent and orchestral than you might be accustomed to.

I had no problems playing or putting this on my iPod.

I highly recommend it!

This live album captures Kansas at their peak. I have listened to this LP more than any other live album I have ever owned. (Of course, I'm a big Kansas fan). This new edition has quite a few previously unreleased songs during this same tour, so I was most anxious to get my hands on it. I wasn't disappointed.

I'm surprised other reviewers haven't pointed out that the vocals are *very* badly recorded here (as opposed to how crystal-clear they are on other Kansas albums). They're not loud enough, they're distorted and distant, and they're often obscured by an ill-timed cymbal crash or guitar lick. And it's a shame, because A Glimpse of Home, Angels Have Fallen, On the Other Side, and People of the South Wind are great songs. The Away From You chorus is good, too; but Reason To Be sounds like it escaped from a flower-child festival, and How My Soul Cries Out for You is not great songwriting (melodically poor, with an embarrassing halt and drumbreak in the middle, complete with 'scary' distorted vocal rampup to the final chorus).

This is the first Kansas album my family owned. We drove Dad nuts wearing out the 8-track tape on a road trip to Montreal. Dad hated the album, of course; here's his sum-up: 'Too bad the singer is such a mush-mouth, because he has a nice voice.' To which we had no defense, because even after 100 listens, we had no clue what the lyrics were in some spots on nearly every song! (8-tracks did *not* come with lyrics.) Today, thanks to Yahoo's Music Lyrics site, I do know what's being sung, but still find it hard to match the lyrics to what we actually hear on this recording.

BTW, these are _not_ disco-like songs, as others have stated.
Believe me, if this had been disco, Dad wouldn't have minded so much!

It totally confuses me to read degrading reviews of this album. Yes, this album came at the decline of Kansas -- right BEFORE the decline. This album is incredible. I enjoy it as much as any of their albums. They have four full-fledged classics, in my opinion: Masque, Lefoverture, Point of Know Return, and Monolith. Track by track, this album is as strong as any of the others. It would be nice to hear it remastered, though.

Progressive rockers Kansas' seventh album Monolith was released in May of 1979.
By 1979, Kansas had two Top 5 multi-million selling albums out of Leftoverture and Point of Know Return and a Platinum selling double live effort Two For the Show.
When drummer Phil Ehart, bass player Dave Hope, guitarist/keyboard player Kerry Livgren, violinist/vocalist Robby Steinhardt, singer/keyboard player Steve Walsh and guitarist Rich Williams got together to create their first studio album since PoKR in early 1979, the pressure was on the band to deliver another great album considering disco and New Wave had hijacked the music scene with a vengeance.
On Monolith, the general sound is still that of the band's famous progressive hard rock sound that characterized their output but mainstream styles like disco and New Wave was pushing prog into the underground.
We kick off Monolith with the majestic epic "On the Other Side" which has superb guitar work from Livgren and Williams and vocals by Walsh and has the classic tempo changes Kansas were known for. Next was the Top 30 hit "People of the South Wind" which was also a killer track and not a disco tune as some attest it. Next is the Walsh penned epic "Angels Have Fallen" and is a great piece. We close the first half with the rocker "How My Soul Cries Out For You" which features Walsh and Steinhardt again on vocals (like the previous track) and duel leads from Livgren and Williams.
We kick the second half off with Livgren's seven minute epic "A Glimpse of Home" which is an awesome piece and one of my favorite Kansas tracks and the guitar work on this track is unbelievable. Next is Walsh's "Away from You" which is a great piece. We follow with the hard rocker "Stay Out of Trouble" which includes Walsh and Steinhardt on lead vocals and Livgren and Williams trading leads like crazed dogs. We close the album with the acoustic guitar and synthesizer piece called "Reason to Be" which was a minor hit but a great track nevertheless.
Monolith reached #10 on the Billboard chart and is their last million selling album to date in the US as it sold a million copies in the US alone. Sales aside, Monolith is not a bad album, just wrongfully ignored!
RECOMMENDED!

KANSAS - Monolith (1979) (*** ½ ) 8 tracks - (41:45)

Monolith was KANSAS's sixth studio album in five years. The whole band was still together, even under the pressures of stardom, touring, and keeping up the process of writing good songs. Kerry Livgren (guitar/keyboards) was still the main songwriter, and again seemed to pen the most well known songs. In this case, the opening track: On the Other Side, and People of the South Wind (my personal favorite). The album's closer, Reason to Be is a classic KANSAS song. Nice acoustic guitars, good vocal harmonies, and some nice violin sections. A trend the band had started with Point of Know Return, they continued on Monolith, no epic-length songs. A few reached the six-minute plus mark, but that was the extent of it.

Monolith has some good songs on it, but it is just not as "solid" an effort as their two previous albums had been. Many people feel Monolith marks the beginning of the end for KANSAS. The other problem with this particular release is that, just like Two for the Show, this album has only been issued by SONY/Kirshner records. There is no EPIC/Legacy "Remaster" yet (if ever). EPIC has been dragging its feet on this one for YEARS! I heard about rumours of an upcoming remaster back in 2004. The CBS/Kirshner issue is so lacking that the simple single-fold booklet doesn't even have the band members listed or any kind of liner notes. I only have the lyrics because I own a vinyl copy.

I can only recommend this to fans. Hopefully a remastered version will eventually come our way, with more good bonus tracks included like they did on the Leftoverture and Point of Know Return Remasters. Hello? Is anybody listening?

Best Tracks: On the Other Side, People of the South Wind.

Another of Kansas's unusual art-rock visionary albums in a similar vein to the 1975 release "Masque". I remembered purchasing this one as soon as it hit the record stores back in 1979 and remembered trying to decipher the album cover's art & meaning, which showed plains indians with astronaut helmets over their heads- science fiction maybe? The inside cover featured a visionary future return of the native americans amid ruins of our civilization(with a verse of the famous "Ghost Dance" of the Cheyenne Indians). It was realy an artistic statement/idea that had not been thought of before and I thought it was great. And yes the music is pretty cool also!

In late 1974, lot's of my friends were ravin' about a Band called Kansas. In fact, a Big-Time Narc in San Diego, used a story that he had been the Original Drummer for the Band {Phil Ehart he WAS NOT!} Well, in 75 I was trapped onboard a Ship floating around the South China Sea, and I met a new guy who brought along a Boombox, and a bunch of cassette tapes. This new guy named Russell, had all three of the Kansas records on Tape and out on that Hot Tropical Sea, I had my first exposure to the Music of Kansas. Russ, had already seen the Band in Concert twice, and was already a big Fan. We played those cassettes until they melted!

"Masque" is the third Kansas record, and the last before the Big-Breakout of 1977 and: "Leftoverture". It is the first Kansas record to feature anything close to a 'Single' with the inclusion of: "It Take's A Woman's Love" and "It's You". But all the best stuff akin to the first two Kansas records is here as well. Masque, includes the classic Kansas tracks: "Child of Innocence", "Icarus~Borne On Wings Of Steel", "Mysteries & Mayhem" and "The Pinnacle".

Russell, told me that this Music, was only a Blueprint to what the Group was able to do in Concert. Heavy Guitar, Beautiful Keyboards and Amazing Violin Passages are along side some really Fantastic Vocals. This was really something for me to learn that this Band had been playing Biker Bars in Topeka only 2 years before this 1975 Record. But by 1975, we here in the USA, at last had a Band that could should the Brits what real music was indeed all about.

It wasn't until 1977, that Russell and myself were able to see Kansas play live in Winterland, San Francisco. But as that was probably the Greatest Live Show of Music, that I was lucky enough to witness, that my friends, is a Whole Other Story.

This is a Great One. "Masque" is a Keeper!
FOUR STARS !!!

Kansas' seventh studio album (eighth overall) entitled Audio-Visions was released in September of 1980.
During the band's Monolith tour, guitarist/keyboard player Kerry Livgren and bass player Dave Hope were "spritually awoken" and became born-again Christians. As a result, Livgren's songwriting went more spiritual and Christian oriented whilst singer/keyboard player Steve Walsh was still writing straight-ahead rock and roll and living the rock star life.
The opening rocker "Relentless" is a great rocker with superb lyrics and awesome performances all around (especially from Livgren and guitarist Rich Williams trading leads in the middle). The pop rocker "Anything for You" follows and is a great pop number. Next is the album's first single which was "Hold On". The track is a great ballad that's a unique love song: a plea from Livgren to his wife to listen to the call of Christ. Walsh's vocal here is superb as is violinist/vocalist Robby Steinhardt's violin work. Next is the rocker "Loner" which is a blazing little rocker with Walsh singing his heart out and drummer Phil Ehart's playing almost punkish but great. "Curtain of Iron" (the first half ender) kicks the album into high gear.
The album's second half begins with Walsh's rocker "Got to Rock On" which was the other rock radio hit from the album. Next is the almost complete band composed "Don't Open Your Eyes" which is a great piece. Next is arguably Livgren's greatest contribution to the album which is the classic "No One Together" which proved prog wasn't dead (much to critics' chagrin). The Williams/Walsh collaboration "No Room for a Stranger" is a rocker which is a great piece. The closing track is "Back Door" which was Walsh's last contribution on a Kansas album until he returned in 1986 as he would leave the band in late 1981 for creative and personal reasons.
Audio Visions was another winner and another Gold seller for the band but the album didn't sell as well as previous efforts and was the first studio album since 1975's Masque to miss the US Top 20 but nevertheless is a great album (especially the remastered CD released in early 1996).
Recommended!

KANSAS - Audio-Visions (1980) (*** ) 10 tracks (43:27)

Audio-Visions represents KANSAS's last album with their original line-up still intact. It's now the 80's, and this album shows it. The pop trends of that era show up strongly on this release.

Unlike the famous writing duo of Lennon/McCartney, who seemed content to write together and share most of the credit, KANSAS's main songwriters, Steve Walsh and Kerry Livgren almost always write seperately. There is always a balance of songs on each album written by the two. Just about a 50/50 split, with a couple of tracks co-written with other members of the band. After a while of listening to the two writing "styles" of Walsh and Livgren, one can guess with about 90% accuracy who wrote each song as they are presented. Walsh leans to a more "pop" style and Livgren still leans towards a more "classical" style of arrangement. And, as usual, the biggest hit on this was penned by Kerry Livgren. Mainly "Hold On". The most recognisable song from this album. The second most popular song is "Got to Rock On" by Steve Walsh. It definitely has a "pop" feel to it. It's enjoyable, but it's not the KANSAS of old and it's absolutely not progressive. Those days are long gone, sadly. After this album was complete, Steve Walsh left the band. This time for good. The personal and musical differences between him and Kerry Livgren were just too much to take anymore.

This is the first KANSAS album to be "remastered" by EPIC/Legacy, way back in 1996. Therefore, it has a decent 7 page booklet, which duplicates what one got with the original album release: original album art (front & back) plus all lyrics and production notes. The remastering job isn't quite up to today's standards, but it's allright.

Best Tracks: Hold On and No One Together

"Audio Visions" would prove to be the album that broke up the original lineup of Kansas. The album is pretty much split between Kerry Livgren's blatantly Christian oriented songs and Steve Walsh's rebellious rockers. Walsh has made it clear in interviews over the years that he was no longer comfortable singing many of Kerry's lyrics and he would leave the band because of it after the tour for this album. Although this album is not as good as the first 5 I like it quite a bit better than its predecessor "Monolith". The band got back on the singles charts with Kerry Livgren's Christian ballad "Hold On". He also contributes the great rocker "Relentless" and the two most prog oriented pieces on the disc "Curtain Of Iron" and "No One Together". Walsh's songs display very much where he was coming from at the time. The lyrics for rockers like "Loner" and "Got To Rock On" pretty much predict his eventual departure from the band. Both are great tunes by the way. Robby Steinhardt's violin is used much less here than on previous discs, an unfortunate trend that would continue on their next album and lead to his eventual departure. Overall this is a very good (but not great) Kansas album and defiantly worth owning.

uumm , great to be reminded why I loved this music way back when :)

I don't really know what was going on internally within the Kansas camp leading up to the recording and release of this album, but the results were incredible. The sound on this album is true Kansas, however, less progressive sounding with limited violins. I believe they produced it themselves and the fuller sound of that production is obvious. The drum sound on this album is the best I've heard - so unlike the tinny trash can-like snare sound of today's bands. I'm sure Phil Ehart had something to do with the fuller drum sound. This is not Point of Know Return or Leftoverture and that is a good thing. Diversity in a band's catalog is good if it does not compromise the integrity of the band and Audio Visions is awesome without being a clone of previous Kansas albums. Even with some corny lyrics here and there, I rate this as my overall favorite Kansas album.